Rainfall is the single most important factor for a healthy lawn after sunlight. Counties with abundant precipitation reduce or eliminate the need for irrigation, lower water bills, and support lush, dense turf with minimal supplemental watering.
We identified the 25 counties with the highest annual rainfall — places where nature does most of the watering for you.
Counties with the Most Rainfall for Lawns
Grays Harbor County, WA receives 100.27142857142857 inches of rain annually — more than enough to sustain any grass type without irrigation.
| Rank | County | State | Annual Precip (in) | July Avg (°F) | Hardiness Zone |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grays Harbor County | WA | 100.27142857142857 | 61.41428571428571 | 8b |
| 2 | Skamania County | WA | 95.82333333333332 | 65.9 | 8a |
| 3 | Pacific County | WA | 94.47999999999999 | 61.025 | 9a |
| 4 | Clatsop County | OR | 89.43666666666667 | 60.4 | 9a |
| 5 | Tillamook County | OR | 84.63666666666666 | 59.5 | 9a |
| 6 | Lincoln County | OR | 83.4625 | 59.625 | 9a |
| 7 | Mason County | WA | 83.25666666666667 | 64.73333333333333 | 8b |
| 8 | Curry County | OR | 81.84166666666665 | 62.199999999999996 | 9b |
| 9 | Wahkiakum County | WA | 79.77 | N/A | 8b |
| 10 | Transylvania County | NC | 78.69999999999999 | 72.1 | 7b |
| 11 | Polk County | OR | 77.33500000000001 | 64.19999999999999 | 8b |
| 12 | Del Norte County | CA | 74.56750000000001 | 58.333333333333336 | 9b |
| 13 | Mitchell County | NC | 72.715 | 64.45 | 7a |
| 14 | Yancey County | NC | 72.715 | 64.45 | 7a |
| 15 | Macon County | NC | 71.98333333333333 | 71.7 | 7a |
| 16 | Rabun County | GA | 71.125 | 72.1 | 7b |
| 17 | White County | GA | 69.06 | 74.36666666666666 | 7b |
| 18 | Baldwin County | AL | 68.9675 | 80.85 | 9a |
| 19 | Lafourche Parish | LA | 68.905 | 83 | 9b |
| 20 | Stone County | MS | 67.36 | 80.9 | 9a |
| 21 | Jackson County | MS | 67.2375 | 80.85 | 9a |
| 22 | St. John the Baptist Parish | LA | 67.21 | 83.2 | 9b |
| 23 | Harrison County | MS | 67.175 | 82.14999999999999 | 9a |
| 24 | Marion County | TN | 66.96 | 74 | 7b |
| 25 | St. Martin Parish | LA | 66.595 | 81.5 | 9a |
Note
High rainfall counties can also face drainage challenges. If your lawn sits in clay soil, consider core aeration and improving soil structure to prevent waterlogging, which damages grass roots.
Methodology
Counties ranked by average annual precipitation in inches from NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals.
Data sourced from USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023), NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (1991-2020 Climate Normals), and US Drought Monitor. All figures represent long-term averages and may differ from individual-year observations.